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We study the large labor force increases since 2020 among disabled workers and among foreign-born workers in the United States. We show that the increase in the disabled labor force largely reflects a change in self- reported disability status among those already in the labor force rather than an actual increase in labor supply. We conjecture that immigration will likely contribute more to labor supply in 2024 than it did before the pandemic, but less than in 2020-2023., Introduction The combination of strong job gains, moderating wage growth, and only small increases in the unemployment rate during 2023 surprised many analysts and forecasters. (1) Some policymakers have suggested [...]

Although the contact probe measurement technique is excellent for wood surface roughness measurement, it is necessary to reevaluate the advantages and future development direction of optical measurement techniques in this field, given the emergence of optical measurement techniques such as laser technology and the increasing academic interest in wood surface roughness. The traditional review method, due to its rather limited research directions, only provides a macroscopic and qualitative description of certain laws and conclusions. The purpose of this review is to use the bibliometrics theory and method to comprehensively sort out the research hot spots in this field and explore them in depth. The bibliographic analysis of 233 documents from the Web of Science database was carried out using CiteSpace's bibliographic network analysis, visualization analysis, and other functions. We discuss in detail the advantages of optical measurement techniques in the characterization of wood surface roughness in two- and three-dimensional (2D and 3D) conditions, the research on the separation of structural roughness and machining roughness of wood using optical measurement techniques, and we explore the future direction of the development of optical measurement techniques in the study of wood surface roughness. The results of the study will act as important references for new researchers who want to enter into the field, to obtain an in-depth understanding of the research hot spots, and to acquire valuable scientific information., Wood is a sustainable engineering material with a wide range of applications, including the production of a variety of wood-based panels. As one of the most essential and irreplaceable resources [...]

With the increasing shortage of global energy and resources, the recovery and utilization of refinery dry gases have become important topics of concern. Separating light hydrocarbons from refinery dry gases [...]

Purpose:To enhance the innovativeness of the manufacturing sector, traditional manufacturing enterprises face the dilemma of choosing digital tools such as industrial Internet, artificial intelligence, and big data. Design/methodology/approach: Meta-analysis was carried out on the digital economy and innovation in the desired location. In terms of the research area, Guangdong-Hong Kong - Macao Greater Bay Area (It may be abbreviated as GBA or Greater Bay Area) is not only a representative of China that can drive collaborative innovation in the manufacturing industry through a digital economy,but also currently the most productive industrial zone, at the peak of digital economic growth. Findings: From the endogenous perspective, this study analyzes the path and mechanism of collaborative innovation of manufacturing enterprises driven by the digital economy, taking Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area(GBA) as an example. It puts forward different assumptions about the collaborative innovation of manufacturing enterprises of different sizes in digital economy. Guided by the innovation goal, this paper gives the scheme of the digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises, analyzes the differentiation between above-scale industrial enterprises and SMEs, and reveals the difference of collaborative innovation effect of the digital economy on the manufacturing industry. Originality/value: The digital economy and digital tools can promote collaborative innovation and high-quality development of manufacturing enterprises above scale by increasing innovation investment and increasing per capital profit. Through the development of the digital economy, promoting the transition and enhancement of digital services in the production sector can boost the productivity of the production sector. Keywords: Collaborative Innovation, Digital Economy, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Classification: Case study, Introduction The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Great Bay Area, also known as The China Great Bay Area, includes 11 cities including Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Macao, and Guangzhou(Canton). It is one of [...]

Purpose: This study discusses the core technology of blockchain and its application in the medical field. At the same time, the characteristics of the application of blockchain technology in medical information sharing, drug traceability, telemedical monitoring, and diagnostic analysis were also discussed from the perspective of blockchain technology and security. Through the discussion, the promotion of this technology to medical services and the existing problems were understood. It aims to provide a reference for promoting research on the sustainable development of blockchain technology in the field of medical services. Methodology: Qualitative research was conducted using the methods of literature reviews and case studies. After introducing the development background of blockchain, combined with the application cases of blockchain technology in the medical service field, this article introduces and analyzes the application of blockchain technology in the medical field from the perspective of privacy protection and security. Findings: This study analyzes the application of three scenarios from the perspective of blockchain technology principles, security, and related theories: data sharing services, drug traceability, and remote monitoring and diagnosis. This article analyzes the different application situations and problems of three scenarios from the perspective of technical theory and practice, providing research references for the theory and practice of blockchain technology in this field. In addition, it also conducts a preliminary discussion on the conflicts between privacy protection and security issues and applications and proposes some preliminary solutions. Research limitations: Regarding the conflict between privacy protection and security issues in the application of blockchain technology to medical services, the study only provides some preliminary issues and solutions, but does not provide a more in-depth discussion of technical solutions. Currently, this aspect is still a relatively thorny issue, and further research is needed in the future to strengthen the sustainable application of this technology in the medical field. Practical implications: The study not only explores the feasibility of applying blockchain technology in the medical field from a technical perspective but also proposes some ways to address the conflict between privacy protection and security issues and technology applications, points out issues that need to be resolved, and offers some preliminary ideas for the sustainable application of blockchain technology in this field in the future. Value: As an attempt to enrich the extant literature, this study considers both the impact of technology on improving medical services' sustainable development and the influence factor that motivates enterprises or related institutions to choose medical services with technology. This research is an exploration of blockchain technology in the sustainable development of medical services through the rich expansion of technical theory and practice. It also points out the security issues that need to be addressed in sustainable applications, and discusses their solutions in a preliminary way. Keywords: blockchain, medical service, sustainable development, data sharing, privacy protection, security, 1. Introduction In contemporary society, blockchain technology is an innovation. Due to its technical attributes like decentralization, distribution, and traceability, it can successfully address data and information islands, privacy leakage, [...]

Abstract Researchers suggest that personal and contextual factors may interact to predict career calling; however, the antecedents of career calling have received less research attention. Consequently, the aim of this [...]

Reasonable assessment of the environmental benefits of integrating forest products into global value chains (GVCs) is important to promote sustainable development. Based on the forest product sector data for 41 countries from 2002 to 2014, this paper explores the impact of GVC participation on carbon embodied in exports using the 2008 financial crisis, a quasi-natural experiment of negative global value chain shocks. We found that deepening backward participation in forest product value chains led to more substantial increases in carbon emissions than did forward participation. Countries with large decreases in GVC participation reduced more carbon embodied in forest product exports after the financial crisis (relative to countries with small decreases) through a larger reduction in the scale of forest product exports, and a decrease in the growth rate of capital-intensive products as a result of the relative decline in capital investment. They increased the embodied carbon of exports through a decrease in the growth rate of skilled personnel. Strengthening the technology effect of GVCs with the guidance of skilled forestry personnel is a key way to decrease exported embodied carbon., A Global Value Chain (GVC) is a transnational production network involving cross-border production chain activities that link production, processing, distribution, and recycling across regions (UNIDO 2002). With the development of [...]

Globally, and especially in China, the leather industry market is being rapidly reshaped by the demand for environmental protection and sustainability. Genuine leathers are traditional, luxurious and have excellent tactile [...]

To recalibrate the connection between participation in global value chains (GVCs) and carbon embodied in trade is of great importance because it provides significant insights about how China's forest products industry should integrate into GVCs and promotes the reduction of carbon embodied in trade. This paper obtains panel data related to the GVC participation of, and carbon embodied in, the trade between China and 43 of its trading partners from 2000 to 2018, and uses fixed effects and quantile regressions to explore the impact of China's participation in the value chains of its trading partners on the carbon embodied in the trade of forest products from the perspective of bilateral trade. It is found that (1) China's participation in the value chains of its trading partners significantly reduces the carbon embodied in forest product trade, especially that of pollution-intensive products (e.g., paper and its products); (2) China's participation in the value chains of high-income countries reduces the carbon embodied in forest product trade; (3) foreign direct investment (FDI) in trading partners weakly suppresses the carbon embodied in the trade of Chinese forest products; (4) the effect on the carbon embodied in the trade of Chinese forest products is only suppressive when China's degree of participation in the value chain is higher; and (5) China's forward participation in the forest product value chains of its trading partners reduces its overall carbon embodied in trade, while the backward participation has the opposite effect., The booming global production sector has leveraged the rapid development of communications and transportation technologies to form global value chains (GVCs; Zhao et al. 2020). In the context of the [...]

Workers displaced during the pandemic recession experienced better subsequent earnings and employment outcomes than workers displaced during previous recessions. A sharp recovery in aggregate labor market conditions after the pandemic recession accounts for these better outcomes. The industry and occupation composition of displaced workers, the prevalence of worker recalls, and the uptake of unemployment insurance benefits are unlikely explanations., From 2019 through 2021, 8.6 million workers experienced job displacement, an involuntary loss of a job because of plant closure or insufficient work (US Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2022). (1) [...]

As a primitive furniture with the longest history in China, the screen (pingfeng) originated in the western Zhou Dynasty and went through the Han and Tang dynasties, the Five Dynasties, the Song Dynasty, and the Ming and Qing dynasties and is still being used to date. This paper aims to explore the modern aesthetics contained in the traditional screen line and measure the contribution of some linear elements to the overall modern characteristics of the screen. By adopting the method of Kansei engineering, quantitative research is carried out on the Kansei image and the linear patterns of the traditional Chinese screens. The results show that the factors affecting the modern aesthetics of the screen have three linear elements: the top section (pingmao), the upright brackets (zhanya), and the base (dunzuo), with the top section and the base having the greatest influence on the 'modern' kansei image of the screen. On the basis of these linear features, the style of the screen can be determined, and the quantitative data can provide reference for the design of modern screens., As a traditional Chinese furniture, the screen (pingfeng) has special historical significance. The traditional Chinese design perception emphasizes the harmonious coexistence between man and nature, and a systemic holistic view [...]

We study the dynamics of two governance constructs, managerial influence over the board of directors and chief executive officer (CEO) compensation, in firms undergoing distress during 1992-2019. Data show a clear trend that governance improves over time, which confounds the inference about the effects of distress on governance. Controlling for the secular changes with a bias-corrected matching estimator, we find that distressed firms reduce managerial board appointments and CEO pay, intensify managerial incentive alignment, and increase CEO turnover. The bulk of CEO compensation changes in distressed firms derives from the performance-related part of compensation, consistent with the 'shareholder value' view of CEO compensation., 1 | INTRODUCTION As much anecdotal evidence shows, corporate distress inflicts substantial costs on firms and brings about all-around changes in corporate structure and decision making. Addressing poorly designed incentives [...]

Abstract This study examined hope as a mediator between school connectedness and childhood career development. Participants included 456 elementary school students in Grades 4 through 6. The results of structural [...]

On a sunny morning last December in Gunungguruh, a village in the Indonesian province of West Java, a 35-year-old furniture maker named Iyus Ruswandi was woken up early by his [...]

Dalbergia cochinchinensis can be distinguished from Dalbergia retusa, Dalbergia bariensis, and Dalbergia oliveri quickly using infrared spectrum characteristic peaks as shown in a previous study. To investigate the components corresponding to the infrared characteristic peaks of Dalbergia cochinchinensis, petroleum ether, ethyl acetate, and butyl alcohol were sequentially used to extract the dispersion liquid of D. cochinchinensis. The petroleum ether extracts were further fractionated by column chromatography, using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT1R) to track the characteristic components during separation. FTIR spectra of petroleum ether extractives indicated the presence of aromatic ketones and olefin compounds. The gas chromatography--mass spectrometry research showed some main components and gave possible structure. Furthermore, their detailed structures were characterized thorough a nuclear magnetic resonance approach, and then two possible components (3,5-dihydroxy-7-methoxy-2-phenylchroman-4-one and 3,5,7-trihydroxy-2-phenylchroman-4-one) were identified., Dalbergia cochinchinensis is a species of Faboideae in the Leguminosae family that mainly grows in southeast Asia. In recent years, the global population of D. cochinchinensis has experienced a boom [...]

Purpose: This study aims to examine the quality of integrated reporting (IR) disclosure prepared by Asian public-listed companies for year 2019. Design/methodology/approach: The quality of 90 Asian companies' IR disclosure, selected from International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) database, was measured using an integrated reporting score (IRSCORE) that has 8 content elements developed based on the IIRC's framework. Findings: The results show the quality of IR disclosures of Asian listed companies are sufficiently high. High level of compliance is observed in 5 content elements--'organisational overview and external environment', 'strategy and resource allocation', 'governance', 'risk and opportunities', and 'performance'. The highest quality score is content element 'organisational overview and external environment' while the lowest is the 'business model, outlook and basis of presentation'. Research limitations/implications: This present study focuses on exploring the quality of IR disclosure prepared by 90 Asian listed companies. Future study that can provide empirical evidence on factors influencing the quality or benefits associated with higher quality could provide more insight on the implementation of IR. Practical implications: As IR is considered as the latest model for corporate reporting, findings of this present study can be useful for policy makers in monitoring the quality of corporate report prepared by their respective companies. Originality/value: Previous studies on IR has put more focus on examining the extent of which IR has been implemented with little focus being given on the quality of the report itself. Additionally, a study that put a specific focus on Asian companies have also been limited. Paper type: Research paper Keywords: Asia, Integrated reporting, Disclosure quality, IIRC framework, Introduction In the global trend of advocating sustainable development, producing a single form of report that focuses solely on financial information has not been able to fully reflect the overall [...]

In this study, bio-based rigid polyurethane (PU) composite foams were prepared by a free-rising method, with the addition of wood particles (10 and 20 weight percent by the foam mass) and kraft lignin (5 and 10 weight percent by the polyol mass) as reactive reinforcing fillers. The resultant PU composites were evaluated for chemical structure, density, morphology. compressive properties, water uptake, and thermal stability. Fourier-transform infrared analysis confirmed the formation of characteristic urethane bonds in all foam samples. The foaming process was slowed down by the incorporation of lignin and wood particles. The apparent density of lignin-incorporated wood--PU composite foam ranged between 77 and 105 g/[cm3] Compared with the neat PU foam, addition of wood particle resulted in decreased compressive properties and increased water uptake of the foams, whereas incorporation of lignin had a positive effect on the compressive properties and water resistance. In general, the PU foam sample with the incorporation of only 5 percent lignin ([PUL.sub.5]) exhibited the optimal physical-mechanical properties, with the compressive strength increased by 74 percent and 24-hour water uptake decreased by 28 percent compared with the control PU foam. Thermogravimetric analysis showed that the incorporation of lignin and wood particles did not significantly affect the thermal degradation pattern of foam but rather increased the mass of char residue., Rigid polyurethane (PU) foams are a class of highly cross-linked polymers with a closed- or open-cell structure. which are used in a wide range of applications including the automotive, construction, [...]

In this study, wood density, anatomical characteristics, and major chemical components were investigated on branchwood, trunkwood, and rootwood of three Alnus sibirica trees grown in Maoershan Mountain, Northeast China. The anatomical structure and composition of xylem within a tree were spatially heterogeneous. At the alpha = 0.05 level, the differences among branchwood, rootwood, and trunkwood were significant in wood density, cell dimensions, extractives, and ash content. The trunkwood was desired as papermaking raw material and structural timber because of its high-quality fibers, cellulose content, and medium density value. Because of its similar density to trunkwood, large-sized branchwood could be used as a substitute for structural materials. The rootwood with low densities and large vessel dimensions was suitable for producing short fiber biocomposite., Forest coverage in China is low. When the People's Republic of China was founded in 1949, the available area of timber forests was only 13 percent, and external dependence of [...]

The anatomical characteristics of culms in Bambusa pervariabilis bamboo at different ages and heights were investigated by microscopy and image analysis. Among the two vascular bundle types found in culms, the broken-waist type was considered typical, with the following measurements: average proportion of fibrous tissue, 41.53 percent; length, 1.75 mm; slenderness ratio, 117; and Runkel ratio, 4.00. These values were close to those of the moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis), which is commercially relevant in China. Age and height significantly influenced the anatomical characteristics of B. pervariabilis: with an increase in age, both the length and double-wall thickness of the fiber gradually increased, whereas its lumen diameter decreased. The width of vascular bundles and the length, width, double-wall thickness, and lumen diameter of fiber markedly decreased from the bottom to the top. Therefore, B. penvariabilis is an ideal raw material for pulping and papermaking, and its performance is close to that of moso bamboo., Sympodial bamboo, an important component of bamboo resources, is abundant in the southeast and southwest provinces of the subtropical and mild temperate regions in China. Owing to its fast growth, [...]

One of the issues regularly debated when companies are suspected of or are caught manipulating their financial statements is the magnitude of executive compensation. Thus, it isn't surprising that after [...]

Objective: To examine whether the Wellness Incentive and Navigation (WIN) intervention can improve health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among Medicaid enrollees with co-occurring physical and behavioral health conditions. Data Sources: Annual telephone survey data from 2013 to 2016, linked with claims data. Study Design: We recruited 1259 participants from the Texas STAR + PLUS managed care program and randomized them into an intervention group that received flexible wellness accounts and navigator services or a control group that received standard care. We conducted 4 waves of telephone surveys to collect data on HRQOL, patient activation, and other participant demographic and clinical characteristics. Data Collection/Extraction Methods: The 3M Clinical Risk Grouping Software was used to extract variables from claims data and group participants based on disease severity. Principal Findings: Our results showed that the WIN intervention was effective in increasing patient activation and HRQOL among Medicaid enrollees with co-occurring physical and behavioral health conditions. Furthermore, we found that this intervention effect on HRQOL was partially mediated by patient activation. Conclusions: Providing navigator support with wellness account is effective in improving HRQOL among Medicaid enrollees. The pragmatic nature of the trial maximizes the chance of successfully implementing it in state Medicaid programs. KEYWORDS longitudinal, Medicaid, motivational interviewing, patient activation, pragmatic clinical trial, 1 | INTRODUCTION Mental and behavioral health conditions (MBHCs), such as anxiety disorders, depression, substance use disorder, and serious mental illness (SMI), affect a significant number of individuals in the [...]